Among Japanese couples who divorced in 2020, a record proportion of so-called "middle-aged divorces" were found to have lived together for more than 20 years.
According to Japan's Ministry of Health, Labor and Welfare, the number of divorces in 2020 was 193,253.
This number began to decline from a peak of about 290,000 pairs in 2002.
Based on the marriage rate, one in three couples divorces.
Among divorced couples, the proportion of couples who have cohabited for less than 5 years has shown a downward trend, but the proportion of so-called "middle-aged divorces" who have lived together for more than 20 years is 21.5%, the highest since the start of the collection of statistics.
The average time spent living together is currently 12 years.
Representing the number of divorces per 1,000 people, Okinawa Prefecture had the highest rate of 2.36 and Niigata Prefecture had the lowest at 1.21.
From the perspective of divorce forms, divorce by agreement accounted for 88.3%, and divorce by trial accounted for 11.7%.
The main reasons for divorce: dissatisfaction with the woman's housework, low income of the man, the man's concealment of the fact that he is married is out of the woods, the woman takes care of the man's mother, the man does not help, and the views on many things are inconsistent....
Japanese netizens commented: The marriage rate of young people may drop below 50% in the near future, and the number of middle-aged divorces is increasing. In the future of Japan, the number of lonely deaths is likely to increase dramatically. I feel that the issues of health care and welfare are still in their infancy and seem to be at a dead end. The trend of declining birthrates and aging cannot be stopped, and Japan will decline significantly. Both the ruling and opposition parties can ignore each other's daunting task of Japan's future survival. In 100 years, Japan's sovereign state may cease to exist.